


dear theodosia

by wand3ringr0s3



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Character Death, F/M, Fred Weasley Lives, fred is a dad, like this is just really sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:29:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26417992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wand3ringr0s3/pseuds/wand3ringr0s3
Summary: How can do you tell a baby that her mother isn't coming home?
Relationships: Fred Weasley/Reader
Kudos: 63





	dear theodosia

Fred stands outside of the door. His hand hovering over the handle. He can’t even remember the last time he was here. When death eaters took over the ministry and Diagon Alley became dangerous he was forced to go into hiding with the rest of his family. Staying at his Aunt’s house as he and George filled orders from the basement. Now that the war was over he could go home. Could it even be called home anymore? 

“Hey, Are you going to be okay?” 

A hand rests on Fred’s shoulder causing him to jump back. A panicked look on his face. He looks around to see it was only George. His twin, his best friend. This wasn’t the war anymore. This was just the aftermath of it all. Relaxing a bit he throws on a smile. 

“I’ll be fine. Don’t you worry about me.” Fred says, trying to stay as positive as he always is. 

That’s Fred. The joker. The prankster. The comedic relief. 

He provided that joy with the joke shop before the war and even though its over, some people still need that. His family needs it. He needs it. He needs to be that happy person he always was. George doesn’t look convinced. His eyes swimming with worry as he watches his twin’s smile struggle to stay on his face. 

This isn’t Fred and you know, that’s okay right now. No one can go back to their normal self after. What happened. But George had never wanted to slap that smile off his brother more than that moment. He didn’t have to pretend to be okay anymore. 

“You know I can stay here for a few nights if you want.” George offers, not wanting to let Fred out of his sight just yet. Fred looks down, a small smile on his face. George was always more selfless than him. Something he was slightly jealous of when they were younger. 

“Angelina is waiting for you Georgie. Can’t keep the misses waiting can you?” George flinches slightly as he notices the tears building up in Fred’s eyes. A soft quiet cry comes from the other side of the door causing Fred’s head to perk up. 

“I should get going. I’ll see you soon yeah?” George takes a deep breath and pulls Fred into a hug. 

“Yeah. Don’t forget you’re coming over for dinner soon. If you don’t Angie will have my head.” The two share a laugh at that. 

The first laugh they had between each other in a while. With one last worried look George disapparates, leaving Fred alone again. He mulls over Georges words. Going over to his brothers for dinner felt, too normal. It was too soon for this. 

The cries get louder and Fred snaps back to reality. Quickly opening the door he ignores the pit in his stomach. Keeping his head down he goes to find the sources of the cries. Passing the pictures that hang on the walls, the shoes that were still left on the floor, the books that were sitting on the shelf he reaches the room he needed to be in. 

Opening it slowly he finds his daughter wide away crying her eyes out in her crib, “Sh sh please don’t cry darling daddy’s here.” Fred coo’s lightly picking her up and out of her crib. Patting her back lightly he rocks her softly, whispering kind words into her ear. 

“Daddy’s here.” When the cries won’t stop he takes her out of her room. 

Walking around the flat he talks to her, trying to calm her down. His heart breaking with ever cry that comes out of her mouth. He hated seeing her so upset. She was his little girl after all. Soon the cries turned into hiccups making Fred sigh with relief. Sitting on a chair he puts her into his lap. Bouncing her up and down on his knee. A soft giggle falls from her lips making him smile even more. 

“There’s my little firecracker.” Pinching her cheeks he leans to press a kiss to her forehead. “Mummy!” She gurgles out. She was only a year old but she could say a few words. Mummy and daddy. 

God how excited Fred got when she said her first word. He was making silly faces at her before breakfast, making her screech with laughter. 

“Dada!” She squealed loudly and Fred stopped. 

The widest smile broke out on his face and he rushed over to her, picking her up and twirling her around. “Say it again.” He beamed with so much happiness as she happily cried out dada again. He was her first word and he’d never forget that moment. But now hearing her call out for her mum. 

It broke his heart. 

How do you tell a baby. This sweet little princess, his sweet princess that her mummy wasn’t coming home. 

“Ellie, how about I tell you a story?” She perks up at the mention of a story. Fred always told the best stories. The funny voices, the dramatic acting. She ate up everything he had to say. 

“Well, when you were born. The world was filled with not very nice people.” He starts off slowly, not wanting to scare her. “Me and your mum did what ever we could to protect you.” The looming war was terrifying to him. 

Back at school it was always in the back of his mind but after he left and started the joke shop things changed. He married you. He had a child. He had a family to protect 

“Now we stood strong and fought out ground. We fought for you.” 

Fred didn’t want to go back the burrow or go to his aunts house. He wanted to believe he was strong enough to protect the ones he loved. Hiding. Leaving the shop and fleeing felt like running away. He was Fred Weasley and he didn’t run. But he wasn’t just Fred Weasley anymore. He always had his family but he had you and Ellie. He was Fred Weasley but he couldn’t think about himself anymore. 

“Soon me and your mum were called to a giant castle. We were going to fight the bad guys so they couldn’t hurt anyone else.” 

Fred always knew he had to fight. He knew it was coming for a long time but that didn’t stop him from feeling absolute terror in his heart when the day came. He tried to convince you to stay home and look after Ellie. The idea of his daughter becoming an orphan was a real possibility and it would kill him inside if he died leaving his daughter alone. 

But of course the fire that raged in you couldn’t be stopped, not even by Fred. He lightly touches his lips as he thinks back to the passionate kiss he shared with you before the battle started. Ellie reaches out to him. Her small hand grasping for his larger hand. 

“Your daddy was stopping bad guys left and right with your Uncle Percy when a bad guy attacked your daddy” Fred looks down at Ellie. 

Her eyes wide, taking in every word he was saying. Her eyes were a beautiful chocolate brown just like his. People always told him that she had his eyes but the rest was all you and he wouldn’t want it any other way. Looking at her made his heart ache. Ellie was the spitting image of you. Even at a year old the similarity was clear. Down to the way she would laugh. He would always joke about her taking after your looks and his personality but he secretly hoped she’d be just like her mother. 

“You mum she…” His voice cracks as he searches for the words. He can feel the tears in his eyes as he thinks back to that moment. 

The moment he lost you forever. 

“FRED!” You cried out. Fred dodges spell after spell. 

Somehow a smile on his face still. He had scratches and dirt on his clothes and his face but he was determined to keep fighting. But he can’t fight everything. Percy who was fighting beside him had cracked a joke and Fred couldn’t believe his ears. He didn’t notice the spell fly past him and hit the wall. He didn’t notice the way you were running towards him screaming his name. He didn’t notice the wall that was crumbling behind him. 

But he remembers it all now. 

You ran at him as fast as your legs would carry you. There wasn’t any hesitation as you shoved him out of the way. His eyes went wide as Percy pulls him back from the falling rubble. He doesn’t remember this but Percy told him afterwards he let out the most heart breaking scream as he called your name. Fighting Percy with all his strength to get to you. Ripping himself from his grasp he shoved the broken wall off of you. Forgetting about the battle around him as his mind was only focused on saving you. 

By the time he reached your body, he was too late. 

“Dada.” Ellie reaches for Fred’s face. A frown on her face as she watches tears fall down her fathers face. She didn’t know what was making him so sad and she didn’t like it. Fred wipes away his tears and takes a deep breath. 

“Your mum was a hero Ellie.” His lip wavers as he holds back from breaking down right there. “She loved you so much darling, So so much and-” He stops to wipe away a few stray tears. 

“She’s not coming back for a while baby.” Fred wasn’t even sure if she could understand him but the way her face changed made him think she did. 

Her wide eye demeanor shifts to one of sadness. Her nose scrunches up and she starts to cry again. This time it was louder than before. She doesn’t understand why she can’t see her mum anymore and it breaks Fred’s heart. 

“Don’t cry baby, Sh, its all going to be okay.” Fred wipes away the tears off his daughters face. 

“We won, the good guys won and your mum was apart of it. She fought so you could grow up safely and I promise you. I won’t let anything hurt you.” He cups her tiny cheeks and brushes the tears away. Her tiny hands reach for his fingers, grasping tightly. 

“I love you so much my little firecracker. Some day when you grow up you’re going to do great things and make your mum proud.” He whispers soothingly. Her cries stop as she reaches out for Fred, wanting her fathers embrace. Giving her a tight hug Fred picks her back up. 

“Come on lets get you to bed.” Placing her back in her crib carefully Fred wraps her up in her blanket. A small stuffed rabbit by her side. As he pulls away her face scrunches up, ready to cry as her daddy leaves. 

“No no don’t cry, I’ll be here. I’m never going to leave you baby I promise.” Fred coos, his heart breaking as she reaches out for him. He waits for her to fall asleep. 

It kills Fred inside every time he looks at her, everything about her reminds him of you. He missed you so much. He never thought he would have to raise Ellie by himself. There was so much that you would miss. Her first steps, her first day of school, her wedding. It’s not fair. You should be right there with him for everything. How was he supposed to handle this without you. Closing her bedroom door Fred rushes to the bathroom. The door muffled his sobs as he clutched the bathroom counter. His vision becomes blurry as he cries his heart out. This wasn’t fair, this wasn’t okay, nothing was going to be okay again. Not when the love of his life is gone. How could he raise Ellie without you. 

He needed you. 

A pair of arms wrap themselves around Fred. Through the tears Fred could make out the bright red hair and missing ear. 

“You’re mental if you think I’d let you be alone after everything.” George mumbles. 

He had never seen Fred this distraught before. It broke his heart to see him like this. His older twin brother who always had a joke to keep the mood light or to cheer someone up was broken inside. 

“It’s going to be okay Freddie. You aren’t going to be alone in this. Ellie is going to be just fine. She’s a Weasley after all.” Fred lets go of the counter to hug his brother tightly. 

“I-I miss her so m-much” Fred cries into his shoulder. “I miss her too.” George squeezes his eyes tightly as he lets Fred cry into his shoulder. You were his friend too. His sister-in-law, one of his closest friends. He found Fred crouching over your body, crying his eyes out. His heart sunk in his chest when he realized you were dead but he the battle was still raging. Fred couldn’t care less but George forced him to get back up. His only reason was do it for Ellie. 

“But you have Ellie, she needs her dad now more than ever and you’re the best damn dad out there Fred.” It was true. 

Fred loved you and Ellie more than anything. He never thought he would be the type to settle down and start a family at the age of 20 but becoming a dad was the best thing that had ever happened to him. Nothing George could say would really help Fred now. Not yet anyway, he needed to grieve. So he just sits there, letting Fred cry into his shoulder. 

Fred knew that George was right. He had Ellie, his little girl to protect with every thing he had but the pain of losing you was something he had to deal with. So as he cries into his brothers shoulder he promises to himself that he’s going to be the best dad in the whole world.

“What’s her name?” Molly asks holding her granddaughter in her arms. 

Fred glances back at you with a smile. You were fast asleep after giving birth to the best present Fred could ever ask for. It was just him and his mum in the hospital room. Molly had never been so proud of Fred before. The boy who used to prank and tease his siblings was now a dad. She could already tell just how wonderful a father Fred was going to be too. Fred leans over his mothers shoulder to get a good look of his daughters sleeping face. Tears welling up in his eyes as he looks at her. His bundle of joy. She was so small and so innocent and she was his daughter. He couldn’t explain the feelings that bubbled in his chest when ever he looks at her. 

“Ellie, Ellie Y/n Weasley”


End file.
